How to score at an interview
January 30, 201010 New Year’s resolutions for job seekers
December 30, 2009Job seekers often encounter three major roadblocks to success: poor marketing, poor networking, and poor mind-set. Now, an expert has offered 10 New Year’s Resolutions aimed at overcoming those obstacles.
Andy Chan, vice president for career development at Wake Forest University, said that adopting these 10 resolutions could help refresh and rejuvenate the job search, and get the New Year off to the best start possible.
Roadblock 1 – Poor marketing
“Many people don’t realise that the way they are marketing themselves just isn’t working, and they never get any feedback. The best way to get feedback is to ask for it from people who do a lot of hiring,” said Chan.
1. I will ask friends or acquaintances who manage and hire people to evaluate my cover letter and resume and give me real feedback – even if it hurts to hear it.
2. I will ask these same friends to conduct a practice interview with me and give me “tough love” feedback.
3. When I find an attractive job on the Web, I will apply immediately (with a tailored cover letter and resume) and search for friends and colleagues who could act as referrals to help me network into the organization.
Roadblock 2 – Poor networking
“We make the assumption that if we apply on the Web, it will get us in the door. But the truth is, if your experience doesn’t line up perfectly with the job, the likelihood of getting seen is low. That’s why networking is important. People hire people; they don’t hire paper,” Chan said.
4. I will be thoughtful about when to send my resume, and I will not send my resume to everyone I know.
5. I will be specific about the type of work and organizations, including names of target organizations that I find most interesting.
6. I will network 80 percent of the time and use the Web 20 percent of the time.
Roadblock 3 – Poor mind-set
“A lot of people are looking at jobs through a narrow lens. But as the old Rolling Stones song says, ‘you can’t always get what you want.’ You may need to focus first on what you need and get the ideal job later,” Chan said.
7. I will be open to exploring many options because an interesting opportunity may exist beyond what I can see on the surface.
8. I will re-examine what my real financial needs are so that I can be more open to opportunities that may pay me less than what I want.
9. I will evaluate opportunities by recognizing that this job can be a stepping stone to another job (inside or outside the company) – especially as the market improves.
10. Although I might want to quit and do a job search full-time, I am more attractive to employers when I am employed.
Wish You Happy New Year To All !!
10 things never to do in the office !!!
September 8, 200910 Office Faux Pas by Catherine Clifford
Beware of these blunders unless you want to be the coworker everyone loves to hate
You’ve got a job. Good. Now keep yourself off a potential-layoff list by avoiding bad office behavior. Here are 10 horror stories straight from the trenches.
1. Don’t! Be the Office Downer.
You don’t want to be such a buzz kill that people arrange their desks away from you.
That’s what Caroline Melville, owner of virtual administrative service VirtuallySorted.com, had to do after hiring an accountant to work with her small team.
In the mornings, when Melville asked how he was doing, he would respond with a deadpan, “I am not dead yet.”
2. Don’t! Microwave Fish in the Office.
Tuna sandwiches are banned from some offices, but fish dishes in the microwave are absolutely off limits.
3. Don’t! Go Barefoot
4. Don’t! Set Your Ring Tone to the Jonas Brothers
Keep your phone on vibrate. Your officemates notice your ring tone — especially if it’s particularly loud and annoying.
5. Do! Save Smiley Faces for Mom
Sherry Kerr, the owner of a small public relations agency, hired a recent college graduate to be her assistant and was confronted with an acute case of smiley face overload.
They were on the picture frame, clock, mouse pad, screen saver and a decoy on the monitor. “The desk space itself was really dreadful,” says Kerr.She also put smiley faces next to her initials and every single place she signed her name — including the company’s tax forms.
Kerr eventually had to let her go, for unrelated reasons, but, Kerr says, “I have to confess that I was happy about not seeing smiley faces anymore.”
6. Don’t! Be the Boss’ New BFF
“People who are worried about being laid off end up going overboard to prove that they are indispensable, and that ends up making them seem so obnoxious to people,” says Tina Lewis Rowe, a professional development coach.
7. Don’t! Read Your Emails Out Loud
Keep a lid on it, neighbor. One wife complained — on her husband’s behalf — about a coworker who reads her emails out loud. And listens to her voicemails on speakerphone. Seriously.
Now her husband has to take any serious reading home and do it at night because he can’t concentrate in the office.
8. Don’t! Give Yourself a Mani/Pedi
“I had a boss who would clip his nails at his desk,” says Michelle Poteet.
“It would be one thing if you waited until there was background noise, but it always seemed to me that people, would do this when it was dead silence. Getting rid of a hang nail would be fine.”
9. Don’t! Steal Food
One anonymous reporter out in the field says that her Lean Cuisines disappear from the freezer on a regular basis.
10. Don’t! Crank the Russian Folk Music
Headphones, people.
“We had one person who was playing Russian folk music all day long,” says Megan Slabinski, executive director of The Creative Group, a California-based staffing agency.
Oddly, management was reluctant to address the issue, reports Slabinski.
“Ultimately, we encouraged them to say, could you please put on a pair of headphones?”
To read completely view source below.
source: http://finance.yahoo.com/career-work/article/107646/10-office-faux-pas.html
10 Future-Proof Jobs You Can Get Right Now
April 22, 20091. Undersea Welder
How to Do It: Oil companies hire dive outfits with welders certified by the Association of Commercial Diving Educators. Schools such as the Commercial Diving Academy and New Jersey’s Divers Academy International have four- to five-month certification courses. Swimming ability and a high school diploma are prerequisites; scuba diving isn’t.
Earning Potential: Right out of school, you’ll pull in $17 to $20 an hour. “After two and a half or three years, that typically doubles,” Harrison says.
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2. Zero-Energy Home Architect
How to Do It: Earn a master’s from one of the 61 U.S. architecture programs that offer classes with a green bent. (Yale has a joint degree in architecture and environmental management.)
Earning Potential: Nationally, staff architects earn about $45,000 to $100,000. Architects who own their firms can make much more.
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3. Combined Heat and Power Mechanic
How to Do It: CHP suppliers provide training. Electricians and mechanics with experience on jet and helicopter engines, which are similar to CHP turbines, find their skills are a natural fit.
Earning Potential: Salaries are $30,000 out of the gate; they top out at $75,000.
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4. Energy Engineer
How to Do It: Earn a degree in chemical, mechanical, electrical or civil engineering—or a newer specialty called energy resources engineering. A Certified Energy Manager (CEM) certification is useful; it demands expertise in subjects like indoor air quality codes and standards, thermal energy storage systems and energy economics.
Earning Potential: Salaries start in the $50,000 range; with a master’s, you’ll get bumped up to around $70,000. Managers can pull in more than $100,000.
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5. Digital Detective
How to Do It: Programming skills are a must; a degree in computer science is helpful in landing a job. The Center for Cyber Defenders Program at New Mexico’s Sandia National Laboratories offers specific red-team training.
Earning Potential: $60,000 to start on the government and government-contract side; six-figure salaries are common in the private sector.
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6. 3D Sports Tech
How to Do It: You can master 3D still photography on your own using a program like HumanEyes Capture 3D Software Also, take classes in digital videography (art schools and university film programs offer them), then look for a job as a 2D cameraman. “With digital technology, you can learn a lot about 3D while you’re actually shooting,” Hannisian says.
Earning Potential: Salaries start at $50,000 and can go as high as $150,000 for television work. For the elite earners in 3D movie production, Schklair says, “There is no limit.”
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7. Wind Explorer
How to Do It: Texas Tech University’s Wind Science and Engineering Research Center offers a summer internship for undergrads and has one of the country’s few Ph.D. programs in the field. However, it’s possible to jump in without an advanced degree. Piggott teaches turbine-building seminars worldwide; Blue Energy has an apprenticeship program in Nicaragua.
Earning Potential: Nonprofit firms based in developing countries pay from $1000 to $4000 per month. Annual salaries in the U.S. currently range from $35,000 to $55,000.
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8. Fabricator of Carbon-Fiber Spaceships and Planes
How to Do It: Many companies will train newbies. However, community colleges can offer a head start with introductory courses in composite fabrication.
Earning Potential: Pay starts low but can climb to $20 per hour. Managers who go on to earn engineering degrees can make up to $100,000 a year.
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9. Battery Engineer
How to Do It: A bachelor’s in math, materials science or engineering is essential. Sastry’s program is very highly regarded: “Students are getting jobs even before they finish their studies,” she says.
Earning Potential: To start, $50,000 to $60,000; at the senior level, $95,000.
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10. Independent Video-Game Designer
How to Do It: More than 200 schools offer game-design degrees, including the Art Institute of Portland, which graduates students with a B.S. in Visual and Game Programming. But consumer tech is so good now that you may be able to go it alone. “You can make stuff in your bedroom that’s as good as what people are making professionally,” Carless says. Art, music and coding skills are all critical.
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How To Stand Out At A Job Fair
April 18, 2009It will be jammed with job-seekers, so follow these steps to set yourself apart as someone to hire.
“Absolutely,” says Eric Winegardner, vice president of client adoption at Monster.com, which is sponsoring more than 100 job fairs across the country. “It cuts out the Internet way of recruiting and brings people together face to face.”
Yes, but you sometimes have to wait in line for an hour just to get in. How promising can that be? Well, consider this: At the General Dynamics fair, about 30 candidates were offered jobs on the spot.
How did those lucky few break through the sea of job-seekers?
“They had the right combination of skills, and they presented themselves well,” says Tim Strike, senior manager of recruiting and staffing at General Dynamics. “They fit our opportunities exactly, and they were professional and prepared.”
That’s the key.
There are several ways you can find out about job fairs in your area. Targeted Job Fairs’ Web site, targetedjobfairs.com, lets you search by city or ZIP code, and you can sign up to receive e-mails when something’s happening in your area.Monster.com offers a list of upcoming career fairs on its homepage, and nationalcareerfairs.com also allows a search by region or ZIP code. Also check your state’s Department of Labor Web site. It too will list upcoming fairs.
To read more go to source:http://www.forbes.com/2009/04/15/job-fairs-employment-leadership-careers-advice.html
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